PHOENIX—Twenty of Arizona’s highest-achieving high-school
seniors have been named Flinn Scholars and will receive scholarships to Arizona’s
three public research universities valued at more than $120,000.

The merit-based award—which recipients accept in many instances over admission to the nation’s most prestigious universities—is a full ride that covers the cost of tuition, fees, housing and meals and provides funding for at least two study-abroad experiences plus additional benefits.

The Flinn Scholars Program, supported by the Phoenix-based Flinn Foundation in partnership with the universities, selected the Class of 2019 Flinn Scholars from a record-high 894 applications, or an award rate of 2.2 percent.

The 34th class of Flinn Scholars features 20 students
from the Phoenix metropolitan area, Tucson, Prescott, and Pinal County,
representing 19 high schools.

“Each Flinn Scholar we meet is unique, but these students have
something in common besides the capacity to excel in the classroom,” said Tammy
McLeod, Flinn Foundation president and CEO. “They have deep dedication to their
schools, communities, the future of Arizona, and the world. The Flinn
Foundation is excited not only to announce this new class of Flinn Scholars but
to see what lies ahead for them and our state.”

The only school with two Flinn Scholars this year is Arizona
Agribusiness and Equine Center-Estrella Mountain, a charter school west of
Phoenix. Those two students are the first Flinn Scholars from their school.

Four other high schools are also celebrating their first
Flinn Scholar in 2019: Maricopa High School, Basha High School in Chandler,
Gilbert Classical Academy High School, and BASIS Prescott.

The 2019 Flinn Scholars named a variety of areas of study in
their applications, including Mandarin, biochemistry, psychology, economics, mechanical
and environmental engineering, mathematics, nursing, agribusiness, philosophy,
biomedical science, and computer science.

The Scholars will start undergraduate studies at Arizona State University,
Northern Arizona University, and the University of Arizona in August.

There are now nearly 650 current and alumni Flinn Scholars, with
about 80 Scholars studying at the three universities at any time.

“The academic accomplishments, extracurricular involvement,
and dedication to service this group has demonstrated are remarkable and we
have high hopes for their future contributions,” said Anne Lassen, Flinn
Scholars Program director. “We also want to commend all of the high-achieving
students who applied and made this year’s selection so challenging.”

The typical Flinn Scholar achieves at least a 3.5 grade-point average, a top-5 percent class rank, and a score of 1340 on the SAT or 29 on the ACT and demonstrates exceptional leadership in extracurricular activities.

The Flinn Scholars Program, established in 1986, is operated by the Flinn Foundation Scholarship Program LLC and supported by the Flinn Foundation, a Phoenix-based private, nonprofit, grantmaking organization. The Foundation, founded in 1965 by the late Dr. Robert and Irene Flinn, also supports the advancement of Arizona’s bioscience sector, arts and culture, and the Arizona Center for Civic Leadership and its flagship Flinn-Brown Academy.